Dental Crowding

You may have been told by your orthodontist that your child needs a space maintainer to help make room for adult teeth that are still growing in, but are crowded. You might ask - Why wouldn't there be enough room for the teeth that are growing in? Shouldn't the adult teeth just be replacing the baby teeth that were already there?

Baby teeth are often not the same size as the adult teeth that replace them.  Your front adult teeth are quite a bit wider than the baby teeth that they replace. The opposite is true for your back teeth. The back adult teeth are smaller than the baby molars that they replace. This size difference is what can make a space maintainer very useful. This situation combined with the fact that you may get large teeth from your mom and small jaws from your dad (or vice versa) can cause erupting adult teeth to run out of room.

Orthodontists commonly use an appliance known as a space maintainer while children still have adult teeth that are growing in. There are many uses for a space maintainer, but the most common is insufficient spacing for the adult teeth. There are also many types of space maintainers, but the most common is called a lower lingual holding arch. This appliance takes advantage of the size difference between the adult premolars and the baby molars to save room for crowded front teeth. This appliance can make the time spent in braces shorter or even not necessary.

If your child's front teeth appear to be overlapping or too crowded, check with your orthodontist to see if a space maintainer might be a good option. At Budd Orthodontics, we offer free consultations to discuss concerns you might have with your child's dental development. Give us a call! We would love to meet you.

There are basically three ways an orthodontist can create the space needed to straighten crowded, crooked teeth.  The most common is to widen and expand the smile to create a little more room for big teeth in a small jaw.  Thankfully, this option will work for most patients. The second way is to “slenderize” the teeth by polishing them to make them a tiny bit smaller.  As long as the reduction is minimal, there are generally no long-term negative consequences to this approach – and for people with really big teeth it can be a great option.

Occasionally, there is so much crowding that even a combination of widening and “slenderizing” just does not create enough room to fit in all the teeth with braces.  In these few cases, it is better to have fewer teeth that fit in your mouth then it is to try and jam all the teeth into a small jaw.  Trying to jam teeth into the bone when there isn't enough space can cause periodontal disease over the long term. If some teeth are removed (extracted), the remaining teeth and gums end up being healthier and they look better too.  We can discuss all the available options with you to find out what is going to give you the smile you want and deserve. Please call our Scottsdale orthodontic office or our Phoenix orthodontic office location for a free consultation.